UGUniversity of Georgia · Biology
Chagas Disease Research Unit
Rick L Tarleton · Athens, Georgia
Research Focus
Dr. Rick L Tarleton's lab focuses on improving diagnostics and treatment strategies for Chagas disease, caused by the parasite Trypanosoma cruzi. By developing more sensitive detection methods using advanced PCR techniques, the lab aims to enhance understanding of the parasite's lifecycle and effectively monitor treatment outcomes in both humans and animals, particularly dogs. This research addresses a major health challenge in Latin America and aims to improve public health interventions.
Chagas diseaseTrypanosoma cruziPCRdiagnosticstreatment outcomesimmunologyveterinary medicineinfectious diseasespublic healthnon-human primates
Research Aims
5AIM 01Develop high-sensitivity detection methods for Trypanosoma cruzi in blood samples.
AIM 02Evaluate treatment efficacy in both humans and dogs infected with T. cruzi.
AIM 03Investigate the relationship between parasite load and immune response in Chagas disease.
AIM 04Assess long-term health outcomes of treated dogs in high-transmission settings.
AIM 05Validate rapid diagnostic tools for use in clinical and public health settings.
Skills the Lab Values
PCRUltraprecision droplet digital PCRDNA fragmentationclinical trial designserological testinganimal handlingdata analysisimmunological assaysechocardiographybiostatistics
Output against the department
Publications244top 25% of dept.256th of 1,033
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations14ktop 26% of dept.268th of 1,033
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.